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| - Oh, Ballantine, I don't know what to make of you! I think you could really shine if you didn't stretch yourself quite so thin in a misguided attempt at being trendy. It's nice that you're trying to branch out with your menu, but Asian fusion is clearly not your speciality, and I really think you need to work on perfecting a handful of specific dishes before overrunning your menu with mediocrely prepared options. (Those sushi nachos, though? Those were fab. Why can't everything on your menu be so yummy?!)
Service was absolutely terrible the evening we went as well! We visited on half-price sushi night, and as soon as we sat down my sister (a Ballantine veteran) asked the waitress if there was a wait on the sushi should we choose to partake, as the chefs can get quite backed up due to the deal. The waitress told us no, everything was running on schedule, but then added with a bit of attitude that sushi *does* take a while to prepare, as if we were uncultured dolts who had never heard of this mysterious delicacy before. Um, sushi actually doesn't take that long if you know what you're doing and there aren't a million orders up. I'd venture a guess that it's probably one of the quicker things to make on the menu. Definitely faster than a steak!
Our waitress continued to be pretty terrible. She dropped off our appetizer, but didn't bring any plates or silverware, and then disappeared! We had to flag another server down. After I asked for a water she vanished once again. After waiting ten minutes we had to flag down the same alternate waitress as before, who I assume gave our girl a bit of a talking to as she finally showed up, somewhat apologetic. "Oh, right, I told you I was going to bring you a water, didn't I?" It's not like Ballantine is a big place. Not that hard to keep track of your table!
Food, with the exception of the sushi nachos (Seriously, I LOVED those things, and they're the reason for three stars instead of two.) was mediocre. I got two sushi rolls and they tasted like something you'd pick up at the grocery store. I didn't try my brother-in-law's pad thai, but it looked watery and strange, not like any pad thai I've ever seen. Seriously disappointing meal.
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